Woman, 24, dies after being thrown 30 feet from French fairground ride: reports

FIRMINY, France - A woman in France was killed and a second was injured Monday when the spinning fair ride they were on catapulted them more than 30 feet to the ground, prompting authorities to take four people connected with the ride into custody, reports say.

The victim, 24, was on a ride Monday evening at a Funfair in the central commune of Firminy when the pod she was seated in appeared to break off from the ride and plummet 33 feet to the ground, AFP reported.

Emergency services said Tuesday that the woman was declared dead on the scene.

A second woman, 20, was taken to a local hospital, although her condition was not immediately known.

It was not clear if she was seated in the same pod as the woman who died.

A video obtained by the Daily Mail appears to show the moment when the ride malfunctioned, tossing the capsule into the air.

Advertisement

As of Tuesday, it was shut down, along with the neighboring attraction, so investigators can look into what caused the accident.

Four people, including the owners and operators of the two rides, were reportedly taken into custody.

The two-week festival began on Oct. 12 and is said to be one of the largest fairs in France with more than 100,000 people expected to visit.

A similar incident occurred at a different Funfair location in March when a man died after a swing ride collapsed in Lyon, AFP reported.